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New EnglandVillage

G.M.Candler

Published by the

AMERICAN MUSEUMClaverton Manor-Bath- Somerset

AVCJU2

New England Village /

Some aspects of life in a New England settlement

during the seventeenth century

G. M. CANDLERDirector of Education, The American Museum in Britain

Illustrations by S. M. Candler

gS^THSGivT^

MAY 2 6 1982

i-'BRARlES

THE AMERICAN MUSEUM IN BRITAIN

Introduction

The first permanent English settlement on the east coast of

North America was made early in the seventeenth century. By

the end of the century settlements were scattered along more

than a thousand miles of coast from Maine to South Carolina.

In the south the climate made possible the development of

plantations, and Virginia and Maryland soon prospered on the

growing of tobacco. The Middle Colonies of Pennsylvania and

New York were far more varied in their trade and agriculture.

Of all the colonies, however, those to the north were made in

an area most suited to English settlement, as the name NewEngland implies. Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire,

and Rhode Island had all been established by the end of the

century. But there was to be little contact for a long time

between the different colonies. Many rivers cut into the long

irregular coastline. While providing good harbours and inland

routes, they also made for small and often isolated settlements.

By 1690 the population of the English colonies in North

America numbered just over two hundred thousand. Thoughmany merchants of the time considered the West Indies to be

of far greater importance, the future growth of the American

colonies was assured.

The coastal area was rich in natural resources. Boundless

forests provided game - deer, turkey, wild geese, and great

flocks of pigeons; the rivers and coastal waters teemed with

fish; and in time other resources, such as iron, were discovered.

The climate made it possible to grow many of the grain and

vegetable crops known in England. Maize, or Indian corn,

was bought at first from the natives, but soon became a staple

crop in New England.

3

.CONNECTICUT j^RHODE ISLAND

ew Haven

; PENNSYLVANIA^'^»

ATLANTIC OCEAN

APPALACHIAN MTS

.

L607, 1st permanent

English settlement.

NORTH CAROLINA

\\ SOUTH CAROLINATHE ENGLISH COLONIES IN 1700.

Settlement was confined to a narrow coastal strip ,and

the western boundaries had not yet been permanently

established .

Spanish settlements

NEW ENGLAND IN 1700.

rote the spread of settlements along the coast andriver valleys. Villages marked are l.Watertown.

2. Concord. 3. Dedham. 4. Sudbury, -see second chapter.

6 Introduction

Merchants who supported colonizing ventures saw their

purpose as being to provide raw materials for the Mother

Country. Thomas Weston of Bristol, for example, wrote

angrily to the Plymouth Colony in 1621 complaining that the

Mayflower had returned to England without a cargo. He under-

stood little of the difficulties the colonists faced during those

early months. Yet within a year of their arrival the men of

Plymouth were loading cedar clapboards and kegs of beaver

pelts aboard another merchant ship bound for England. Fur

and lumber were to be two of the principal exports of NewEngland throughout the seventeenth century. More important

still was the fishing industry. Small boats put out from manyports along the northern coast, and headed for the Newfound-land Banks and the great shoals of codfish. The fish was salted

and dried, then exported to Europe.

Throughout this period of early settlement the majority of

colonists in New England lived in small, scattered settlements

away from the few large towns. Their diaries make frequent

mention of the problems of living on or close to the frontier.

Indian attack was a constant danger, and a hidden one - for

the Indians

'would not come to open battle with them, but fire their

houses, kill their cattle, and lie in ambush for them as

they go abroad'.

Disease often struck with devastating effect, as John Winthrop,

the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, showed

when he wrote in August 1642,

'A plantation was begun the last year at Delaware Bay by

those of New Haven, and some 20 families were transported

thither, but this summer there fell such sickness and mor-

tality among them as dissolved the plantation.'

8 Introduction

The following year several natural elements combined to

leave the settlers inadequately provided for the severe NewEngland winter:

'The immediate cause of this scarcity were the cold and

wet summer, especially in the time of the first harvest; also,

the pigeons came in such flocks, (above 10,000 in one flock,)

that beat down, and eat up a very great quantity of all sorts

of English grain; much corn spent in setting out the ships,

ketches, etc.; lastly, there was such abundance of mice in

the barns, that devoured much there. The mice also did

much spoil in orchards, eating off the bark at the bottom of

the fruit trees in the time of the snow, so as never had been

known the like spoil in any former winter.'

Despite these difficulties many small settlements had been

established in the coastal area and inland along the river

valleys of New England by the end of the seventeenth century.

To the south the Dutch had been ousted from New York, and

no other European settlements seemed strong enough, at least

for the time being, to pose a serious threat. Many of the most

urgent problems facing the original settlements, such as the

shortage of food, had been overcome. Yet the way of life for

most people was not so very different from those first years of

struggle.

The Village Community

The term 'town' was applied to any New England settlement

which had obtained certain 'liberties' or powers. It might be

the chief town of Boston, with an estimated population in 1690

of some 7,000; on the other hand it could refer to a small

village of twenty or thirty households. Boston was the largest

and most thriving town, not only in New England but through-

out the colonies. Trade with the West Indies, with the other

colonies, and with Britain brought much wealth to the mer-

chants of Boston. Its narrow streets and lanes — once said to

have been laid out by a meandering cow - were filled with

noise and bustle. Many trades were carried on in the rows of

houses with their high-pitched roofs and gables. Yet the

majority of New Englanders lived far from such scenes. Theirs

was an agricultural and rural way of life. Travel between the

villages was difficult since the roads were poor, and there

were many rivers and streams to cross. Most people rarely

ventured far beyond the borders of the township.

The system of land-holding in these country districts was

similar to that of the English manor, but without the control

of a lord of the manor. As the population increased a small

group, perhaps members of one congregation, would apply to

the governing body for permission to plant a settlement.

Watertown, on the Charles River a few miles above Boston,

is one example. By the mid-16 30's this was one of the most

populous villages in the Masachusetts Bay Colony. No more

free grants of land were being made, and all the good land

was either in use or staked out ready for use. In 1635 two

groups of Watertown people applied to the General Court and

were granted land, the one at Concord, the other at Dedham.

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12 The Village Community

Three years later another group, pleading 'straitness of accom-

modation, and want of meadow', were given a land grant in a

broad plain of meadow grass below Concord soon to be namedSudbury.

A generation later the sons of the original Sudbury settlers

were themselves anxious to obtain land. Led by the deputy

to the General Council, a group of twelve men applied to be

allowed to establish another settlement. The Court granted

their application provided some twenty or thirty families, with

a minister, settled there within three years. The first land

distribution was made in the new village of Marlborough, to

the west of Sudbury, in 1660. In these ways the inland settle-

ment of New England was gradually extended.

Once a village was established leaders of the group would

assign plots of land to the different families. Houses were

built around a central common, while nearby was the church.

Home lots were the areas of land immediately around the

dwelling houses and outbuildings, and contained orchards and

gardens. Beyond these the meadows and pasture land were

sometimes held in common, while the arable land was divided

into strips held by individuals. But the movement towards

enclosing land which had begun long before in England had

been carried over into the colonies. In New England many of

the first settlements had been made by men from East Anglia,

where land enclosure had largely replaced the open-field

system.

Indian corn and wheat were staple New England crops,

though oats, rye, and barley were also grown. Colonial farming

was, however, very primitive. There was little knowledge for

example of crop rotation. The plough was a clumsy wooden

implement, with an iron cutting edge, and needed a team of

two or four oxen. Once turned, the soil was then broken downwith mattocks and hoes. In addition to clearing land, breaking

The Village Community 13

up the soil, and tending the crops for long months before the

harvest, the farmer had to look after his livestock, the cattle,

sheep, and pigs. Throughout the year his days were long ones,

stretching from dawn to dusk.

Land at least was plentiful in most areas, and could often be

had for the taking, provided the farmer was prepared to clear

and make it productive. From the earliest times, however,

he had to turn his hand to many tasks in order to survive in

the wilderness. He had to learn to hunt and fish, to build a

house, to make furniture and many other household items, to

defend his home from attack. All of this was in addition to his

work on the land. One of his first and most important tasks was

to make a home.

Houses

The climate and the materials available determined the type

of house built in New England in the seventeenth century.

An even stronger influence, however, was the English origin

of the settlements. The most typical example was the simple

and practical frame house, a type which had been built for

centuries in England and which continued to be built into the

seventeenth century, particularly in East Anglia.

The frame house replaced the earliest shelters erected as

temporary homes in the colonies. These had taken many forms,

including tents made from sail-cloth, and 'holes within the

ground', as Captain John Smith had described the dugouts,

with their roofs of poles and bark, at Jamestown. Perhaps most

interesting of all were the 'English wigwams' known to have

been used at Plymouth. These tunnel-like structures were madewith a framework of poles, and covered with bark or skins.

They were often improved by the addition of fireplaces and

crude wooden chimneys. In their basic form they provide

another example of the way in which contact with the Indian

was sometimes to the advantage of the European.

These temporary shelters began to be replaced as soon as the

settlers had the opportunity to build more substantial homes.

For the most part they disappeared within a few years. They

were replaced by houses with timber frames of hewn oak posts

and beams. Walls were sometimes made of brick, but more

often of wattle and daub, which was a kind of basketwork of

branches set into the frame and daubed with clay or plaster on

both sides. In England similar houses often had both frame and

wall filling exposed. In New England clapboarding was used.

Horizontal overlapping boards were nailed to the frame to

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16 Houses

cover the whole of the exterior walls, thereby providing extra

protection against the harsh winters.

Roofs were usually covered with wooden shingles made of

pine. They replaced the earlier thatched roofs which were such

a fire hazard. Windows were few and small owing to the

scarcity of glass, much of which was brought from England.

Attempts were made to manufacture glass in the colonies, but

they met with little success during the seventeenth century.

The window glass was made in diamond-shaped panes, and set

into lead, which was often imported in sheets from England.

Some windows were fixed, while others were of the casement

type and swung outward on a hinge.

One curious feature of these houses was the overhang in

the front. This again was a copy of an English idea, but the

exact purpose is a matter of conjecture. Certainly it did not

provide cover against Indian attack as has sometimes been

suggested. It may possibly have originated in the need for

more space at the first-floor level in the cramped streets of an

English town. In this case its use in the open spaces of NewEngland villages was unnecessary, and was carried on as a

matter of custom until it died out in the early eighteenth

century.

Houses were usually small at this time, size being deter-

mined not so much by the timber available as the way in which

it was worked. Most jobs were done by hand. The main posts

and beams were squared off with a broadaxe, boards and

planks were sawn with a two-man 'whip-saw', and some of the

interior surfaces of the timbers were smoothed down with an

adze. Not surprisingly builders often chose to use fairly young

trees, which were easier to handle.

The plan of the house varied according to the needs of each

family. Certain well-recognized types soon began to emerge,

however. To begin with there was a simple one-room plan. Here

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Houses 19

the front door opened onto a small entry-way, or 'porch' as it

was then called. Immediately ahead was a staircase built

against the side of the immense stone chimney. This led to a

sleeping space under the roof. The hall, or main room, took its

name from medieval England, and was a combined living,

cooking, and dining room. In New England this was sometimes

known as the 'keeping room', a term which again came from

England, and is linked with the castle keep.

Many poorer families continued to build one-roomed

dwellings throughout the seventeenth century. The natural

development from this very simple form, however, was the

two-roomed house with central chimney. The chimney had two

fireplaces back to back, and not only served as a strong pillar

at the centre of the building but also provided all-round

warmth. The second room became known as the parlour. It

was mainly used for special occasions, such as the entertain-

ment of guests, though it might also serve as a bedroom.

A third variant on the basic plan came about with the

addition of a single-storey lean-to, covered by roof rafters

carrying down from the eaves at the back of the house.

The resultant shape caused these houses to be known as

'saltboxes'. The central section of the lean-to was generally

used as a kitchen. Another fireplace was added to the chimney

on that side, and sometimes a bake-oven too. Space on either

side of the kitchen might be used for a pantry and an extra

bedroom. By having separate areas for some of the functions

of the other rooms, particularly of the hall, the saltbox house

provided more comfort than the very simple early buildings.

Building tools in use: 1. The broadaxe was used to square off theframing

timbers. 2. Exposed timbers were smoothed with an adze. 3. The two-man

whip-saw served to cut long planks and boards.

20

Inside the Home

The first thing that would probably strike a modern visitor on

entering one of these homes would be the stark simplicity of

the rooms. The solid frame of the house was evident in the low

beams and in the corner posts. Woodwork was hand-finished

and unpainted. The walls were plastered and whitewashed,

or partly covered by wainscot, while the floors were of plain

wide boards. Dominating the room, whether hall or parlour,

was the great fireplace, sometimes eight feet or more in width,

with an oven built into one corner of the brickwork. The room

would seem dark to the modern visitor, even during the day-

time, because of its small windows. Apart from the fire it was

lit at night by candle or simple oil lamp. The members of the

household rose early to make full use of the precious hours

of daylight.

The hall served as the general living room. In the centre was

a long table, perhaps with a trestle base and a pine board which

could easily be removed after a meal, though by the end of

the century folding tables were beginning to be used. The most

valued pieces of furniture - a bedstead and chests - stood

against the walls. Shortage of space meant that chests were

the chief means of storage, particularly for bedding and

clothing. They often served as seats. Benches and joined

stools were common, together with some chairs, though

there were many households which contained only a single

chair.

A variety of woods went into the making of this furniture,

the main one, as in Jacobean England, being oak. Pine was

used for lids and backs, where the stronger wood was not re-

quired. Walnut, maple, and ash were also used, particularly

21

Colonial lighting implements: 1. A candle holder mounted on wood, with

an end-spike for insertion into a beam. 2. A candle snuffer, usedfor trim-

ming wicks. 3. A candle stand with a slide to adjust the height as the

candle burned. 4. A lantern of pierced tin, with a candle holder inside.

5. A rush-light holder combined with a candle holder. 6. An ingenious

wooden betty lamp holder, with a screw post to regulate height; each betty

lamp had a wick and burnt oil or grease.

23

24 Inside The Home

towards the end of the seventeenth century. In general furni-

ture was made from straight pieces of wood joined at right

angles with mortise and tenon. The only rounded elements

would be table and chair legs, and chair spindles, which were

sometimes turned on a lathe. A good deal of furniture with

bold carving or brightly painted patterns, mainly using natural

motifs, has survived from that period. Much of it was madeby English craftsmen who came to the colonies. Its survival

may be due to the skill involved in its manufacture, and the

value placed upon it by succeeding generations. Most of the

furniture in seventeenth-century New England homes, how-

ever, was made by the owner of the house. The hard demands

of his life left him little time for decorating his home. Furni-

ture, like the house itself, was simple, if well made, with little

ornament.

The plainness of these rooms was offset to some extent by a

variety of objects - table linen and cushions for example. Ananimal skin, of deer or bear, might be found on the hearth,

though carpets were rare, and were used as table rather than

floor covers at this time. More prosperous homes might include

imported items - a lantern clock, delftware, books, and per-

haps a looking glass.

By the late seventeenth century many houses had a kitchen

separate from the hall. Food was cooked in pots hanging on

chains or hooks from the wooden lug pole which bisected the

flue of the chimney. Diet was far less varied than today, and

consisted chiefly of 'hasty-pudding', made with corn meal and

milk; meat and fish when these were available; and vegetables,

particularly beans. Much of this food was raised on the farm.

Some of it came from the home lot, which also provided apples

for the cider which was commonly drunk at most meals. Food

was served on either wooden or pewter plates, and was eaten

with the help of a knife or spoon, or with the bare hands. Forks

26 Inside The Home

were not in general use in seventeenth-century New England.

Even the relative prosperity of Samuel Sewall's house in

Boston did not appear to include forks. When the house was

burgled Sewall wrote, 'My Spoon and Knife, and Neckcloth

was taken.' No mention was made of a fork.

Many other household chores were carried out in the kit-

chen. One of the most important was candle-making. Tallow

from the farm animals was rendered by heating, and whensufficient had been collected was again melted. Into the liquid

were dipped strands of cotton wicking hanging from a stick.

Some of the tallow stuck to the wicks, and was then allowed to

cool before the wicks were dipped again. The process continued

until the candles were large enough to use. Another task was to

fill a tub with layers of ash and straw, and to pour in small

quantities of boiling water. This formed lye at the bottom of

the tub, which was then drawn off and mixed with grease from

the kitchen to make a soft soap.

One of the greatest problems in the home was the preserva-

tion of meat. A brine tub was to be found in most kitchens,

and meat was either pickled, or salted and cured on hooks

hanging in the fireplace. Later the meat was made more palat-

able by the use of herbs. The seeds of plants such as fennel

and carraway were often used in cooking. Even more impor-

tant from the housewife's point of view were the medicinal

qualities of herbs. Often the only medical help available in a

village was the knowledge which some old woman had of these

qualities. She would know when and how to use the catnip,

the sage, the spearmint, and the host of other plants which

grew in the herb garden close to each house. Something of the

importance attached to this form of medicine can be seen in

the popularity of herbals, and the extraordinary claims they

made. One which was sold in seventeenth-century NewEngland had this to say of sage:

Inside The Home 27

'It stays abortion, it causeth fruitfulness, it is singular

good for the brain, it helps stitches and pains in the sides.'

The main occupation in the home, apart from the prepara-

tion of food, was the making of textiles. Women of the family

had to carry out many processes before the raw wool and flax

could be turned into cloth. Wool was cleaned and carded, then

spun into yarn on a wheel. The weaving loom was a cumber-

some machine, and very often one weaver served the whole

village. Flax was ripened and beaten to separate the fibre from

the rest of the plant. It was combed or hatcheled, before being

spun and woven into linen. Some of these laborious jobs were

carried out by children, particularly girls. Boys in turn had

their own chores, such as bringing in wood for the fire.

All of these and many more tasks filled the waking hours.

When the labours of the day were finally done, the dipped

candles and the grease lamps were lit, casting shadows around

the group gathered by the fireside. Perhaps the head ofthe family

would read to them from the Bible. Then the cluttered and

dingy room would become a refuge from the harshness and the

dangers of their daily lives. It was times like these which

Samuel Sewall must have had in mind when he made the com-

parison between heaven and a comfortable home.

'As I lay awake past midnight, in my meditation, I was

affected to consider how long ago God had made provision

for my comfortable lodging that night . . . and that led meto think of heaven the house not made with hands, which

God for many thousands of years has been storing with the

richest furniture . . . and that I had some hopes of being

entertained in that magnificent convenient palace, every wayfitted and furnished. These thoughts were very refreshing

to me.'

Religion and Education

During the seventeenth century a great many religious sects

existed both in Europe and in the American colonies. In

Virginia the Established Church was the official religion, and

Anglicans were predominant. Maryland was founded by Catho-

lics, and Pennsylvania by Quakers, though both colonies in

their search for settlers welcomed members of other religious

groups. In Massachusetts, however, where religious dissent was

an important motive for immigration, the Puritans controlled

secular as well as religious affairs. Despite their own experi-

ences in England, they were harshly intolerant of other reli-

gious sects, especially the Quakers who criticised the authority

of the ministers. This intolerance led to the founding of other

New England colonies, such as Rhode Island and Connecticut.

In spite of the diversity in forms of religion there was an

almost universal concern for spiritual matters. When Anglican

ministers of Virginia preached that settlement was God's work,

their belief in their own destiny was as sincere as that of the

Puritans. Life was continually measured by religious standards.

Perhaps the Puritans went further than most in seeing God's

hand in many things. When Samuel Sewall's house caught

fire one summer's night in 1709, his wife gave the alarm, and

Sewall quickly put out the fire. But as his diary indicates, he

did not take the credit.

'Thus with great indulgence GOD saved our house and

substance.'

Even while he and his wife were determining the earthly

cause of the fire, Sewall saw no difficulty in assuming that a

higher power was also involved.

28

30 Religion and Education

'We imagine a mouse might take our lighted candle out

of the candle-stick on the hearth and drag it under my closet

door behind the box of wafers.* The good Lord sanctify this

threatening; and his parental pity in improving ourselves

for the discovery of the fire, and quenching it. The Lord

teach me what I know not; and wherein I have done amiss

help me to do so no more!'

Observance of the sabbath was an important part of Puritan-

ism. To ignore the teaching of the Bible on this matter was to

invite dire consequences, as John Winthrop quite clearly

implied when he described how

'Archibald Tomson, of Marblehead, carrying dung to his

ground in a canoe upon the Lord's day, in fair weather and

still water, it sunk under him in the harbour near the shore

and he was never seen after.'

Attendance at church on the sabbath had been enforced by

law in England, and the practice was carried over into NewEngland, although the 'church' became a 'meeting-house'.

Puritans in each village formed a corporate body which

managed many of the affairs which would have been left to the

clergy in the Anglican Church. They elected their ownminister; called vestry meetings; granted land to the minister;

and made arrangements for the building of the meeting-house.

The Puritan 'church' was - as its name implies - a hall for

meetings. It was generally a framed building with little decora-

tion. The emphasis was not on ritual, but on the sermon, which

often lasted for two or three hours. A great deal of resolution

must have been needed to sit in an unheated room in winter

for such a length of time. Samuel Sewall once wrote, with

feeling:

* Sewall was probably referring here to the small discs of dried paste

which were used at that time for sealing letters.

Religion and Education 31

This day is so cold that the sacramental bread is frozen

pretty hard, and rattles sadly as broken into the plates.'

Since the Bible was regarded by most Protestant sects as the

key to salvation it was essential that children should be taught

to read. The General Court of Massachusetts Bay insisted that

every town should provide some schooling. Boston and other

well-established towns had grammar schools for boys and

private schools for girls, but some of the smaller settlements

could not afford schools. Sudbury, for example, had to wait

until 1692 before being able to appoint a

'Writing school master, to teach the children to write and

to cost accounts'.

Where schools were not available parents taught children in

the home. Hornbooks were often used. A hornbook was a small

piece of wood, with a handle, to which was attached a piece of

paper with the alphabet and perhaps the Lord's prayer. Thepaper was protected by a sheet oftransparent horn. Learning was

mainly by repetition. Later the child moved on to readers, which

were nearly always of a pious nature. Few families owned

more than a Bible and perhaps a collection of sermons, though

other books, mainly of the more practical kind, were available.

The Puritan attempt to create an orderly community based

on religion did not always succeed. Human nature inevitably

fell short of the high ideals, and there were many disagree-

ments between ministers and other leaders of the community.

Puritanism at its worst was a narrow, superstitious faith which

could lead to the excesses of the witchcraft trials in Massa-

chusetts and Connecticut. Yet these largely self-sufficient and

self-governing towns did survive the dangers and the rigours of

the frontier. In no small part was this due to the faith which played

such an important role in both family and community life.

Defence

Throughout the colonial period Indian attack was an ever-

present danger to the outlying settlements. Despite manytreaties minor skirmishes were almost continuous, and major

wars took place in some part of the colonies every few years.

Other European nations, in particular the French in alliance

with Indian tribes, were a further source of conflict. Every

able-bodied man had not only to defend his home and family,

but to do militia service when required.

The Indian threat appears constantly in contemporary

journals. Sometimes it is a brief reference, as with Samuel

SewalPs cryptic entry,

'More mischief done at the Eastward by the Indians.'

At other times the conflict became much more serious. William

Bradford wrote:

'In the fore part of this year, the Pequots fell openly

upon the English at Connecticut, in the lower parts of the

river, and slew sundry of them, (as they were at work in the

fields,) both men and women, to the great terror of the rest;

and went away in great pride and triumph, with many high

threats.'

This was the beginning of the fierce Pequot War, which was

only brought to an end in 1637 by the destruction of the

Pequot tribe in the Connecticut Valley. Bradford's diary des-

cribes vividly the burning of an Indian village:

'It was conceived they thus destroyed about 400 at this

time. It was a fearful sight to see them thus frying in the

fire, and the streams of blood quenching the same, and

32

34 Defence

horrible was the stink and scent thereof; but the victory

seemed a sweet sacrifice, and they gave the prayers thereof

to God, who had wrought so wonderfully for them, thus to

enclose their enemies in their hands, and give them so

speedy a victory over so proud and insulting an enemy.'

Although Bradford, as governor of Plymouth Colony, had

maintained friendly relations with some Indian tribes, his

evident satisfaction in this affair reflects the ease with which

most Europeans could ignore Indian claims to the land they

had inhabited long before the coming of the white man.

The need for defence led to the building of either garrison

houses, or in the early period stockades around the villages.

The garrison house was a solidly constructed refuge in times

of danger, which might last for a day or two, or even months

on end. 'Indian summer' is a term used today which had an

ominous meaning for the remote settlements. Fine weather late

in the year meant that the Indians would be able to go on

attacking unhindered by the severe winter. Major conflicts

such as the Pequot War led to the first movements towards

a federation of the New England colonies for protection.

But it was local conflicts which made necessary the setting up

of militia in all the villages. The central government in each

colony passed laws relating to defence throughout the seven-

teenth century. These laws concerned the appointment of

officers, the provision of arms and ammunition, and the

organisation of training days. The militia captain had the

authority to take over control of the village in an emergency.

In these ways a citizen army was established, armed and main-

tained in separate settlements, but ready to join together in

companies in time of war.

The first settlers in the American colonies brought with

them European arms and armour: matchlock muskets and

36 Defence

swords were common, while those with military training

might also have pikes and halberds, and heavy suits of armour.

In the New World, however, they found new conditions of war-

fare. The Indian did not fight pitched battles, preferring

ambush and surprise attack. The forest provided his cover, the

bow was silent and accurate, and the tomahawk made a deadly

close-quarters weapon.

The matchlock musket of the first settlers had serious

disadvantages. Loading was a long and complicated procedure,

and the igniting of the powder by a 'match' - a slow-burning

strand of hemp soaked in saltpetre - was cumbersome and

dangerous. By the second half of the century the matchlock

had been replaced by the flintlock, which had a mechanised

form of lighting by the striking of flint against a bar of steel.

In Europe the change-over took much longer, but in America

every frontiersman needed a weapon he could fire more quickly

and in any weather. Several colonies, including Connecticut

for example in 1676, passed laws allowing only flint guns to be

used by the militia.

The firearm was the colonist's most important weapon for

both hunting and defence. All firearms of the time, however,

were relatively slow, and in close contact the sword com-

plemented the gun. Many different types of sword used in the

colonies have survived, showing how common a weapon they

were. Various types of polearm have also been found, such as

the pike which was the most popular, the lance, and the hal-

berd. Like the matchlock they were found to be less effective

against the Indian than they had been on the battlefields of

Europe. They often continued in use as emblems of rank rather

than as useful weapons. Plate armour was also used until the

late seventeenth century, but began from an early date to be

replaced by leather coats made of cow or ox hide, which were

lighter and cheaper to produce.

Defence 37

Arms and armour were as much part of the New England

home, especially in the country districts, as the spinning wheel

or the Bible. Indeed practical and spiritual needs never seemed

to be very far apart in seventeenth-century New England. In

the articles of federation of 1643, Massachusetts, NewPlymouth, Connecticut, and New Haven did

'enter into a firm and perpetual league of friendship and

amity, for offence and defence, mutual advice and succour

upon all occasions, both for preserving and propagating the

truth of the Gospel, and for their own mutual safety and

welfare'.

A New World

Towards the end of the seventeenth century the influx into the

American colonies of immigrants from countries other than

England greatly increased. Until that time, however, the vast

majority of settlers were of English stock. This was particularly

so in New England. Inevitably they brought with them tradi-

tions and skills which helped to mould their new way of life.

The New England village or 'town' of the seventeenth century

was similar in many ways to an English village. Houses were

built, for example, not on the land being farmed, but together

in some convenient spot by a stream or spring. They fronted

the village street, and each had its own outbuildings, garden,

and orchard. Beyond the village lay the fields and meadows

in which could be found the animals and some of the crops

typical of the mixed farming carried on in many parts of

England.

There were, however, some notable differences. In England

there had been a shortage of timber since Tudor times, and the

use of wood as the main building material was confined to

certain areas. The dense forests which surrounded most NewEngland settlements provided plenty of wood for buildings of

frame construction and weather-beaten boarded exteriors.

A few buildings stood out from the rest: the meeting-house

with its open belfry, the solid garrison house, perhaps a school-

house, and even a tavern with a crudely painted sign. But there

was no manor house, just as there was no church in the sense

of a building which represented the Established Anglican

Church. The traditional sources of authority in the English

village were absent. The Governor and the General Court

enacted laws for each colony, but the centres of government

38

40 A New World

were far removed from most of the settlements, and communi-

cation was infrequent.

All resident householders regularly gathered in the meeting-

house to discuss their common needs. Leaders inevitably

emerged, to become 'selectmen', or to head committees dealing

with particular problems. Most settlers, however, had some say

in the town's affairs, whether it was the maintenance of roads

and fences, the levying of rates, or the preservation of law and

order. As members of a Puritan congregation they also con-

trolled religious affairs, from the appointment of ministers to

the censure of other members for offences such as swearing or

drunkenness. In the later settlements church membership was

not a prerequisite for voting in the town meeting. But in the

older towns the congregation and the town meeting consisted

of much the same people.

Like the meeting-house the garrison house had no English

equivalent. Following the destruction of the Pequot tribe in

1637 there was peace for many years, interrupted only by an

occasional skirmish. But always beyond the town and the

outlying fields lay the dark forest, reminding the settlers of

the possible danger of Indian attack. In June 1675 the

Wampanoags rose against the New England colonies. In the

fierce guerrilla warfare which followed almost all the towns

were attacked, and twelve of them were completely destroyed.

King Philip's War, as this conflict was called, was brought

to an end through the superior organisation and weapons of

the white man. Along the frontier, however, the danger re-

mained. Deerfield was situated at the most northerly point of

English settlement in the rich Connecticut Valley. It was

abandoned during King Philip's War, later rebuilt, and then

attacked several more times. On a winter's night in 1704 came

the most terrible blow of all. Deerfield was attacked by a large

combined force of French and Indians. Over half the town's

A New World 41

three hundred inhabitants were either killed, or captured and

sent northwards into Canada.

The need to make decisions within the community, together

with the hardship of their daily lives, bred a spirit of self-

reliance and independence among the New England settlers.

So much so that almost two centuries later John Adams, second

President of the United States, and himself a New Englander,

traced the history of the American Revolution as far back as

the period of early settlement. One important reason for the

development of this spirit of independence was the vastness

of the land which lay before the colonists. Hunters and traders

brought back fairy tales of fertile land in the back country

which induced many farmers to move away from the older

coastal settlements.

On a map of North America the area thus settled by 1700

appears to be a very narrow coastal strip. Yet Jby that time,

and despite the rigours of frontier life, many settlers had

moved beyond the fall line of the rivers in the valleys of

Connecticut and Massachusetts. They had moved northwards

into Maine, as yet part of Massachusetts, and into NewHampshire. This movement gathered momentum with the

growing number of immigrants in the next century. As settle-

ments were established a way of life evolved which owed muchto English origins, but perhaps even more to the influence of

the New World environment. The settlers ofNew England had

begun to create their own New World.

Suggested Reading

Of Plymouth Plantation, William Bradford. Edited by Harvey Wish.

Capricorn Books, New York.

William Bradford went to Plymouth in 1620 on board the

Mayflower. On the death of John Carver, he became governor,

and remained in this post for most of his life. His account of its

founding and subsequent growth is the basis for all accounts of

Plymouth Colony.

The History of New England from 1630 to 1649, John Winthrop.

Edited by J. K. Hosmer. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York.

John Winthrop arrived at Salem in 1630, and later became

governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He founded Boston,

which was the leading town in the colonies during the seventeenth

century.

The Diary of Samuel Sezvall. Edited by Mark Van Doren. Macy-

Masius, New York.

Samuel Sewall was taken to Massachusetts from England as a

child. In 1683 he was elected to the General Court in Boston.

He also served for many years as a judge, eventually becoming

Chief Justice in the colony. He was the only judge involved in the

Salem witchcraft trials to later publicly recant.

America — The Story of a Free People, Nevins and Commager. Oxford

University Press.

Everyday Life in Colonial America, Louis B. Wright. Batsford.

Colonial America, Robert G. Athearn. American Heritage Publishing

Co.

The Pilgrim Fathers, W. J. C. Gill. Longman.

Puritan Village, Sumner Chilton Powell. Wesleyan University Press,

Connecticut.

42

Suggested Reading 43

The Northern Colonial Frontier, Douglas Edward Leech. Holt,

Rinehart and Winston, New York.

Arms and Armor in Colonial America, Harold L. Peterson. Bramhall

House, New York.

THE AMERICAN MUSEUM IN BRITAIN tells the story of howAmericans lived from the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries through

a series of completely furnished rooms with original panelling brought

from the United States and installed in Claverton Manor. Contrasts in the

life of colonial New England are shown in the Puritan Keeping Room of

the 1680's and the cosy tavern kitchen of the 1770's with its beehive oven

and well-protected bar, in the blue-green panelled living room from Lee,

New Hampshire, and the mid-eighteenth century parlour of Captain

Perley who led his Minute Men at the battle of Bunker Hill. The

sophistication of the parlours from Colchester, Connecticut, and Baltimore,

Maryland, introduces the period of the new Republic. An early nine-

teenth-century country-style bedroom contrasts with the elegance of the

Greek Revival dining room of New York and the richly ornate bedroom

from New Orleans at the time of the Civil War.

In addition there are galleries devoted to the American Indian, the

Pennsylvania Dutch, the religious community of the Shakers, and the

isolated Spanish colonists of New Mexico. There are further exhibits on the

Opening of the West, whaling (with a captain's cabin reproduced from the

last of the great Yankee whalers), textiles (with a fine collection of quilts

and hooked rugs), pewter, glass, and silver. In the attractive grounds is the

semi-circular gallery displaying the vigorous forms and primitive designs

of American Folk Art. There is also an 1830 Conestoga wagon, the ob-

servation platform of a railroad car, and a replica of a Cheyenne tepee.

44

Public opening: April to mid-October, daily (Mondays excepted), 2 pm-5 pm.

The Museum is open to schools throughout the year (January excepted) at

the following times:

Mid-October to March Monday to Friday 9.30 a.m.-12.30 p.m.

2.00 p.m.-5.00 p.m.

April to mid-October Mondays As above

Tuesday to Friday Mornings only

The John Judkyn Memorial, Freshford Manor, Bath, is associated with the

Museum and provides a loan service of material relating to American

history and culture. Some loan kits can be seen at the Museum, and

information on borrowing is provided.

All enquiries concerning these educational services should be made to:

The Education Department,

The American Museum in Britain,

Claverton Manor,

Bath. Tel: Bath 60503.

Printed in Great Britain by Butler & Tanner Ltd, Frome and London

45

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